Whitehall Lane

Whitehall Lane is a small, family owned winery in Napa Valley’s historic Rutherford appellation. They own approximately 110 acres of prime Valley-floor vineyards including the Leonardini Vineyard in St. Helena and are committed to making the finest Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Reserve wine.

The winery continues to receive accolades and awards for producing some of the greatest wines in the world. In Wine Spectator Magazine’s year-end ranking of wines, Whitehall Lane was honored an unprecedented three times in five years for producing wines rated among the top five in the world. The winery has also been voted Winery of the Year from the Quarterly Review of Wines and Wine and Spirits Magazine.

Dean Sylvester

Dean Sylvester is a detail-oriented winemaker who works closely with his crew in the cellar, while keeping a watchful eye on the development of the grapes in the vineyard. He is responsible for all winemaking as well as overseeing the 110 acres of vineyards that Whitehall Lane owns and all vineyards held under contract. He has been making wine in the Napa Valley for more than 30 years, the last 14 at Whitehall Lane. He combines the experience of working with both European and American winemakers, allowing him to marry classic old-world style with modern winemaking techniques. Dean is responsible for making three wines rated among the top five in the World from The Wine Spectator Magazine. His focus and attention were apparent in those wines and all of the wines he makes at Whitehall Lane Winery.

Gallery

Wines

The Vintage: The 2009 growing season was exceptional in our Napa Valley vineyards. The Cabernet Sauvignon fruit bloomed in a perfect environment in mid-May, and the summer days brought ample sun and heat as the fruit grew and ripened on the vine. A dry fall allowed the fruit to fully ripen in ideal conditions.

Winemaking: The grapes were grown in vineyards located in St. Helena, Rutherford, Calistoga, Yountville and Oak Knoll and harvested during the entire month of October. The fruit was fermented at an average of 85°F with gentle pump-overs for excellent flavor and color extraction. The wine was aged in a combination of American and French oak barrels for 19 months and blended to attain balance. Merlot increased texture and softness on the mid-palate while the Petite Verdot and Malbec added color, complexity and additional layers of ripe fruit flavors to the wine.

Tasting Notes: This attractive blend is loaded with floral and bright fruit qualities. Aromas of cherry, violet and sweet vanilla meld with supple flavors of currant, red berry, a hint of cappuccino and toasty oak. The wine is nicely balanced with great length on the finish. The richness and ample fruit make it a fine choice to enjoy now but it will also improve with additional aging through 2018.

2008 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

In keeping with Whitehall Lane tradition, we are pleased to release what to many is our best wine - our 2008 Reserve: a big, sleek, profound wine that is in keeping with Whitehall's house style of taking our very best Rutherford & St. Helena fruit and crafting an exceptional Cabernet Sauvignon, one that can age for 15+ years, or be enjoyable tonight with dinner.

There's a newly designed silkscreen label, and the same great glass "cork."

The 2008 Reserve is a blend of the winery's Fawn Park Vineyard, Millennium MM Vineyard and Leonardini Vineyard. The intensity is present right from the start. This reserve vintage is a blend of 96% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Malbec. Deep, dark purple in color, with inviting aromas of black cherry and toasty oak. The flavors of cassis, black cherry and berry are long, rich and lingering with ample tannin to reward the patient collector. Enjoy this wine through 2024.

2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, Millennium MM Vineyard

Blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon

The Millennium MM Vineyard: Acquired and planted in 2000, the Millennium MM Vineyard is in the Northwest corner of the revered Rutherford appellation, and joins the illustrious ranks of winery only Cabs like our famed Leonardini Vineyard (located in the St Helena AVA, just up the road). This Millennium Vineyard Cabernet is classic, plush, complex, and full of those magical notes that are sometimes referred to as the “Rutherford Dust.”

Enjoy this 100% exclusive to the winery offering, made in very limited quantities for our Club Members and special visitors to the winery. Graceful and powerful now, this wine will age up to 15 years and is sealed with the glass closure we have utilized on Reserve since 2003.

2009 Perfect Union

We, the People, in order to form a more Perfect Union...

Raise a glass of the Union to the Union this summer!

Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah

National Release Date: July 4, 2012 (Independence Day)

About This Wine: Our Founding Fathers formed a more Perfect Union by creating the Constitution for the United States. Whitehall Lane Winery’s Perfect Union is uniting world-class grapes and winemaking expertise to form a more perfect Red Wine.

The 2009 Perfect Union is 100% Napa Valley made primarily of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Merlot grapes by winemaker, Dean Sylvester and the Leonardini Family. The Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot drive this wine with ripe berry fruit flavors and a plush, velvety mouth feel. The Syrah accentuates the berry and cherry flavors while adding spice and a hint of chocolate to this perfectly blended union.

It is time for you to form your Perfect Union by pairing this soft, fruit-driven wine with your favorite dish, perhaps to insure domestic tranquility! Or, celebrate your Perfect Union on an anniversary or other special occasion. Salute!

Tasting Notes: This well-balanced Chardonnay has aromas and flavors of pear, honey, tropical fruit and toasty oak. The Whitehall Lane style is 50/50...partial oak, partial stainless steel, partial ML only, for wonderful balance and the best of both worlds. It has a very long, flavorful finish that lingers.

The Closure: This wine is sealed with a cork free closure. The twist-off closure has a liner that was designed specifically for wine and forms an ideal seal to retain the freshness of this delicious Chardonnay.

“Whitehall again finds its sweet spot in Sauvignon Blanc, here blended
with 12 percent Semillon. That, and a bit of brief barrel aging, provides
great fleshy ripe mango, and a pink-grapefruit sweetness, matched to
a summery side: scents of hay and dry spices.”

Blend: 85% Sauvignon Blanc, 15% Semillon

Tasting Notes: This is a delicious blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon from the heart of the Napa Valley. The fruit was harvested late in 2011 after mild spring and summer weather. The aromas are crisp and refreshing with layers of meyer lemon and sweet grass, while on the palate you will find hints of granny smith apple and green mango. This is a perfect wine for a hot summer day or with a great seafood dish.

Vintage Notes: For the second year in a row Napa Valley experienced mild spring and summer weather that extended the growing season and delayed harvest. The start of Crush 2011 was the latest in Whitehall Lane recorded history. It started more than two weeks later than usual and finished well behind normal, but only two days later than last year.

For the first time in decades of making this fun small production dessert wine, Mother Nature saw fit to give us botrytis, aka "the noble rot" so coveted in Bordeaux's Sauternes appellation. The botrytis shrivels, intensifies and candies some of the fruit, and creates amazing texture and mouthfeel in the wine. All of the classic Muscat flavors are concentrated and infused with honey, candied raisins and orange rind. You can see the wine's extra viscosity when you swirl it in the glass! Enjoy this wine with fresh fruit after dinner, as a dessert by itself, or with one of our favorite pairings: apple pie a la mode!